Located
only 20 miles off the coast of Venezuela, the island paradise of Aruba
serves as a trans-shipment point for illicit drugs�primarily cocaine
from South America. Smugglers generally move large loads of cocaine
into Aruba on fishing vessels, private yachts, and go-fast boats.
They also move drugs out of Aruba inside maritime containerized cargo
and airfreight. Drug trafficking organizations continue to exploit
Aruba's air and sea links to the continental United States, South
America, Europe, Puerto Rico, and other Caribbean nations. Most of
the cocaine transiting Aruba is destined for European markets�primarily
the Netherlands.

Aruba
has large free-zone facilities (areas that allow goods to be held
and then re-shipped elsewhere without paying an import or duty tax),
which provide opportunities for bulk shipments of cocaine to transit
the area without the scrutiny of local officials. Cocaine shipments
in containerized cargo increasingly are transiting the area, specifically
through the free zone. The free-zone facilities on Aruba are conducive
to transshipments, not only of drugs, but also chemicals used in illicit
manufacture of drugs. Some firms in the free zone are suspected of
involvement in money laundering.

Couriers
on commercial flights and cruise ships smuggle small (usually from
1- to 10-kilogram) amounts of cocaine and, to a lesser extent, heroin,
into and out of Aruba, either concealed in their luggage or taped
to their bodies. Commercial air couriers, sometimes swallow up to
1 kilogram of cocaine or heroin per trip. Drug couriers easily blend
into the hundreds of thousands of tourists who visit Aruba each year.

The
proximity of Aruba to South America, a high standard of living in
Aruba, and an underdeveloped law enforcement infrastructure make the
country an attractive meeting place for South American, European,
and U.S. drug traffickers. Colombian traffickers play a major role
in the shipments of cocaine and heroin that transit the island, having
forged trafficking relationships with local Arubans. In the past,
some airline employees and cruise-ship personnel have smuggled drugs
through Aruba.

Aruba
plays a significant role as an offshore center for drug-related money
laundering. Money laundering organizations are well established on
Aruba and enjoy protection from considerable bank secrecy laws and
a stable currency. The organizations use Aruba's offshore banking
and incorporation systems, free-zone areas, and resort/casino complexes
to transfer and to launder drug proceeds. Although money laundering
was made illegal in 1999, the legislation requires a provable underlying
crime with a penalty of at least 4 years. The Government of Aruba
also has an asset-seizure law that allows for seizure at the time
of arrest to prevent criminals from moving assets prior to conviction.

The
Government of Aruba has recently issued several decrees on money laundering
that include increased oversight of casinos and insurance companies.
The Government of Aruba also is in the process of instituting reporting
requirements for cross-border currency movements in excess of 20,000
Aruban florins (approximately US$11,200). Aruba has a Financial Intelligence
Unit (FIU), known as the Meldpunt Ongebruikelijke Transacties (MOT),
and is a member of the Egmont Group, an international group of FIUs.

Aruba
is not a source country for any of the chemicals used in illicit drug
production and has no specific legislation controlling essential chemicals.
Difficulties abound when attempting to gauge the levels of chemical
transshipment through Aruba, as most chemicals legally pass through
Aruba's Free Trade Zone�an area in which local law enforcement has
limited oversight due to local regulations and manpower shortages.
The reporting of chemicals transiting the island is strictly voluntary.

The
Aruba Organized Crime Unit, a small investigative team of the Aruba
Police, or Politie, has responsibility for investigating large-scale
drug trafficking crimes. The Coast Guard of the Netherlands Antilles
and Aruba (CGNAA) is responsible for maritime drug interdictions around
Aruba and the Netherlands Antilles. The Governments of the Netherlands
Antilles and Aruba have agreed to work more closely with the other
coast guards operating in the region in order to present a united
front against drug trafficking. The CGNAA has its own Criminal Intelligence
Division (CID) which is separate from the Politie. However, due to
Dutch law, unless the CGNAA can demonstrate that a given vessel is
either coming from or going to territorial waters of the Netherlands
Antilles or Aruba, any drug law enforcement, other than an administrative
boarding, is considered illegal. Dutch investigators also support
law enforcement investigations in the Netherlands Antilles.

Cocaine,
heroin, and marijuana are readily available in Aruba. Wholesale amounts
of cocaine sell for from US$3,800 to US$4,500 per kilogram among drug
traffickers; heroin sells for about US$23,000 per kilogram; and marijuana
sells for about US$2,000 per kilogram. These low prices suggest a
heavy flow of drugs into Aruba. According to Aruban statistics, an
estimated 14 percent of Arubans regularly use illicit drugs.

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Aruba
serves as one of two forward operating locations (FOLs) in the Caribbean
for U.S. counterdrug aircraft. The FOL, located at Queen Beatrix Airport
near Oranjestad, provides a landing and servicing area for counterdrug
detection and monitoring missions in the region. The United States
and Aruba do not have a formal maritime law enforcement agreement.

Jim Kouri, CPP
is currently fifth vice-president of the National Association of Chiefs
of Police. He's former chief at a New York City housing project in Washington
Heights nicknamed "Crack City" by reporters covering the drug war in the
1980s. He's also served on the National Drug Task Force and trained police
and security officers throughout the country.

He writes for
many police and crime magazines including Chief of Police, Police Times,
The Narc Officer, Campus Law Enforcement Journal, and others. He's appeared
as on-air commentator for over 100 TV and radio news and talk shows including
Oprah, McLaughlin Report, CNN Headline News, MTV, Fox News, etc. His book
Assume The Position is available at Amazon.Com, Booksamillion.com, and
can be ordered at local bookstores.

Aruba
plays a significant role as an offshore center for drug-related money
laundering. Money laundering organizations are well established on Aruba
and enjoy protection from considerable bank secrecy laws and a stable
currency.